Im thinking of relocating to the Tampa area (St. Petersrburg), Orlando area or Jacksonville. What's the running scene like down there? I'm an almost master who runs 5ks to 10Ks and some cross country in the fall, and does 800s/1500s on the track in the spring. Is the age-group competition as good as it is in the Boston area? All-comers meets on the track? How difficult is it to train with the heat/humidity?
check out FLrunner.com or trackshack.com for info
Track Shack is the largest running store (and only...) in Orlando. Running Zone just opened in Melbourne, but the scene is microscopic...
Best advice: go to north Orlando for a job, and travel from there 2-3 hours all around the area to races...West Palm, Jax, Tampa, Gainesville, Melb....
Go to this site to find out about running in Jacksonville.
There are a bunch of local road races, though not knowing anything about Boston I can't speak to how it compares. I think it is the nicest large city in Florida...not all touristy like Orlando. I'd say that Tallahassee and Gainesville(though Tally probably a little better) are some of the better cities to live in/train in Florida. The heat and humidity...you will get used to. It's really not that bad, especially if you run in the evening on the really hot days.
im from western mass, but right now im in orlando. Im not really paying to much attention tot he running scene down here but from what i've seen and heard it doesnt compare to what it is in MA/new england. Although it ispretty big down here. just check out the web sites the other have posted. The one problem i've had down here was finding good places to train
Pensacola is the place to train. UWF has plenty of trails and a decent track. It's also a mecca for post collegiate studs. Matt Davis is here training in the Navy's Flight School, and Pensacola is also home to other studs. It's a small town with little traffic and tons of places to run.
Quite frankly, I hate training in FL. I've lived here for 3 years, and my impressions are: It's too hot, too humid, too flat, and too stormy in the summer. December and January are great though.
Orlando and Tampa both have a decent number of races, but I'm not sure how competitive they are.
Forgot to mention the Track Shack ... a running store in Orlando. They have schedule/results from many of the local races.
Tallahassee is a good place to train. Lot's of trails and pretty decent hills too.
I've been living in Orlando for the last couple years. The running scene downtown isn't terrible, but it's no match for what you're probably used to in the way of clubs in Boston. Running in the city itself is completely a cobblestones and pavement phenomenon, but there are some very nice (and surprisingly hilly) runs in Clermont, about 30 minutes away. There are a couple groups in Downtown Orlado that hold weekly track sessions and tempo runs. Very, very nice people.
The triathlon scene overwhelms the running scene, although Track Shack does put on a very nice 5k/8k/10k Grand Prix series from August to March every year. Nice prize money, and very well-organized events. Mid- to high- 15's wins the 5k's. Again, this is a far cry from the competitive atmosphere you'll find in Boston; Track Shack's emphasis is "citizen racing," although there are some very talented former collegiate runners down here.
You'll have to travel back north for any all-comers track meets. There's just none of that to be had down here. Lastly, the heat and humidity aren't terrible. You'll have to go early if you want to do anything long over the summer, as well as place water on your course. But October to April are simply a dream. Wonderful change of pace for a native Chicagoan to be able to run in t-shirt and shorts in January.
Please feel free to e-mail if I can be of any further assistance.
DT
i heard that some fl ymca has some stud coaching a bunch of slowpokes, taking 20:00 rec runners and turning them into 18:00 stallions. all for peanuts and very little appeciation from his employers.
Yeah, and rumor has it that the coach and his roommate throw kick-ass parties!